Promoting Finnish higher education to China

Recently, the Finnish Ministry of Education and Culture has created many policies for the purpose of encouraging higher education institutions to export products and services globally. China is the world’s second-largest economy and people have an increasing demand for advanced educational resources. This research-based thesis focuses on three main objectives: why are Chinese universities interested in cooperating with Finnish higher education institutions; what are the challenges involved; and what are effective approaches like when marketing Finnish higher education in China? This thesis starts by introducing the background of Chinese higher education expansion, its motivations and the reasons why an increasing number of Chinese students have been studying overseas in recent years. Desktop and primary research were used to interpret information gathered from real projects and practical experiences. The Finnish education system and the current cooperation modules that have been used in transnational education are also presented in subchapters. In the fourth chapter, a real project of joint degree program cooperation between China and Finland is introduced. Obstacles that occurred during the business negotiation process are analysed and the kind of sensitive points that Finns should pay attention to when doing business with Chinese people are discussed. The conclusion from the findings demonstrates that there will be a bright future for transnational education cooperation between China and Finland. One of the effective approaches to promoting Finnish higher education in China is reducing the misunderstandings caused by cultural differences. This requires joint efforts from both sides